Seminars and events

at the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research and at cooperating institutes

Host: Dr. Marc Tittgemeyer

Talk by Prof. Sarah Garfinkel, University of Sussex, UK

Clinical Neuroscience and the Heart-Brain Axis
Interoception incorporates the afferent signalling, central processing and neural and mental representation of internal bodily signals. Historically, within the fields of physiology, psychology and neuroscience, there has been inconsistency in the way that individual differences in interoception are defined and measured. This talk will detail empirical results which demonstrate dimensions of interoception with and without conscious access, with a particular focus on the heart. In normative samples, these interoceptive dimensions are distinct and dissociable. The integration of afferent signals with brain can augment or attenuate perceptive, cognitive and emotion processing. Selective alterations in interoceptive processing are evident in clinical conditions such as schizophrenia and autism, while specific interoceptive disturbances are associated with transdiagnostic symptom expression such as anxiety and dissociation. Understanding the multifaceted nature of interoception and body-brain interactions can open up new avenues for targeted treatment. [more]

Talk by Dr. Uku Vainik, University of Tartu, Estonia

Uncontrolled eating: a unifying heritable trait linked with obesity,overeating, personality and the brain
Obesity is intertwined with behaviour. Many eating-related behaviours have been proposed to explain obesity, such as food addiction, disinhibition and emotional eating. However, these behaviours tend to similarities based on both statistics and definitions. I propose that these behaviours can be aggregated into a single broad trait – Uncontrolled Eating. Such an approach enables reviewing and meta‐analysing evidence done on each individual behaviour. I review evidence how the aggregated Uncontrolled Eating has robust associations with body mass index, food intake, personality traits, and brain systems. I also map out Uncontrolled Eating’s behavioural similarity with other addictions and psychiatric conditions. In summary, Uncontrolled Eating summarises important behavioural aspects of obesity. [more]

Talk by Prof. Christian Ruff, University of Zurich

Dazed and confused? Neural origins of behavioral variability in value-based food choice.

Talk by Dr. Tom Schonberg, Tel Aviv University

New behavioral and imaging findings with the cue-approach paradigm: A non-reinforced mechanism of behavior change

Talk by Prof. Michael Breakspear, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia

Large-scale brain modes reorganize between infant sleep states and predict developmental outcome in preterms
Sleep architecture carries important information about brain health. Here we show that active compared to quiet sleep in infants heralds a marked change from long- to short-range functional connectivity across broad-frequency neural activity. This change in cortical connectivity is attenuated following preterm birth and pre-empts visual performance at two years. Biophysical modeling shows that active sleep is defined by reduced energy in a large-scale, uniform mode of spatiotemporal neural activity and increased energy in two non-uniform anteroposterior modes. This distinct energy redistribution leads to the emergence of more complex connectivity patterns in active sleep compared to quiet sleep. Preterm-born infants show an attenuation in this sleep-related reorganization of connectivity that carries novel prognostic information. [more]

Talk by Dr. Ivan de Araujo, Yale School of Medicine

The gut-brain axis and reward
Visceral organs have long been believed to act as major regulators of emotional state. However, the specific role of gut-borne signals in motivated behavior remains elusive to this day. The talk will describe the connectivity and behavioral functions of a neural circuit that links gut sensory neurons to brain reward systems. Implications for our current ideas on the role of the gut-brain axis will be discussed. [more]

Talk by Prof. Dr. Harald Möller, MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig

Insights into Brain Metabolism by quantitative MRI: An Approach from Physics

Talk by Stephen Smith, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, University of Oxford

Big Data Neuroimaging Studies – HCP and UK Biobank

Talk by Jin Hyung Lee, PhD, Stanford University

Optogenetic fMRI and the Investigation of Global Brain Circuit Mechanisms
Understanding the functional communication across brain has been a long sought-after goal of neuroscientists. However, due to the widespread and highly interconnected nature of brain circuits, the dynamic relationship between neuronal network elements remains elusive. With the development of optogenetic functional magnetic resonance imaging (ofMRI), it is now possible to observe whole-brain level network activity that results from modulating with millisecond-timescale resolution the activity of genetically, spatially, and topologically defined cell populations. ofMRI uniquely enables mapping global patterns of brain activity that result from the selective and precise control of neuronal populations. Advances in the molecular toolbox of optogenetics, as well as improvements in imaging technology, will bring ofMRI closer to its full potential. In particular, the integration of ultra-fast data acquisition, high SNR, and combinatorial optogenetics will enable powerful systems that can modulate and visualize brain activity in real-time. ofMRI is anticipated to play an important role in the dissection and control of network-level brain circuit function and dysfunction. In this talk, the ofMRI technology will be introduced with advanced approaches to bring it to its full potential, ending with examples of dissecting whole brain circuits associated with neurological diseases utilizing ofMRI. [more]

Talk by Professor Paul Fletcher, Cambridge

A cognitive neuroscientific approach to eating and over-eating
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